Third-Stream Music Education

Programming a thematic concert for your ensemble is a quick, easy way to emphasize the bigger, overriding concepts of music for your students while giving a boost of catchiness to your concert publicity. Programming according to a theme could be geographical, historical, or musically theoretical. Planning an entire concert according to a theme does not have to be restrictive, as themes could be completely abstract….and really, three pieces out of five are enough to support your theme. Just think up a catchy title for your musical evening, have a poster contest among your students, and get back to studying those scores. Try these easy (and possibly educational) themes for your Spring Concert:

Time periods: Renaissance, Romantic or Contemporary
all music from one time period, and/or a work based on a period theme. Better yet, teach your ensemble (and your audience) what is it as well as what it isn’t by playing the original and the adaptation back to back.

Journey Through Time
Play one piece from each of the Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Twentieth Century.

Trinity or Attack of the Killer Threes or Triple Play
one work has three flats, one work has three movements, one work has three beats to the measure, one work is a triple-concerto.

Choose a country
Spain, Ireland, Greece, Russia, and Mexico all have significant bodies of literature for American wind band composed about them or from their folk songs. (I can’t say enough about Anne McGinty’s Greek Folk Trilogy or about Brian Balmages Images of Ireland for young band). The continent of Africa has been a subject of fascination for composers, even if it is not a country. I hope to see more works drawing on cultures of the Middle East, the Far East and authentic (artistic) uses of Latin American themes in the next ten years.

Antithesis or Opposing Forces
Include something antiphonic or polychoral, such as from Renaissance Set 1 collection edited by Mark Scatterday; a work for soloist and band; a work that features your percussion section; pair up one work featuring Baroque basso continuo with another work built on a jazz walking bass line; play a superhero movie theme such as Batman, Spiderman, or Superman; and for the grand finale, “bring balance to the force” with Convergence by Roland Barrett.

Life Cycles or Rebirth or Renaissance or New Beginnings
Include the version of Arirang, the famous Korean folk melody which translates as ‘new beginnings’, which best fits your ensemble’s needs, or even perform two contrasting settings of the theme; include the version of Stravinsky’s “Finale” from The Firebird which best fits your band; include a piece from the Renaissance; and for advanced bands, do yourself a favor and check out Steven Reinecke’s Rise of the Firebird.
Antiphony Concert Poster

Filed under: Music Curriculum, Genres and Stylistic Elements